The Ancient Gate
by Rogue Ronin
Summary: A dark entity that has been locked away for centuries is about to be freed. An old enemy is looking for the key, what or should I say who is the key to the dark entity's prison? Completed
1. Default Chapter

Ancient Gate  
  
by Rogue Ronin  
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Disclaimer: I don't own anything that deals with the Ronin Warriors, characters or the rights of them. The only ones that are mine are Kaye and Lightning. Comments email me at cokeacola_75@hotmail.com enjoy!  
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"Why did I help Kaye fight against Kesi? What could I have been thinking? Why would I care what happened to her anyway? Why do I feel this way, what's going on in my head?" thought Phoenix angrily. She launched an attack towards a nearby pillar and made a huge hole in it. The force of the attack shook it so hard that something fell out of its hidden compartment. The object that fell out caught her attention. She turned around and picked it up from the floor. It was an ancient book that has been lost for centuries, then Phoenix started to read.   
  
"This is interesting, I didn't realize that it was this close for it to open already." thought Phoenix. She continued to read the book, until Phoenix came to a certain point in the text.   
  
"Well look here, this is even more interesting. Oh yes I do believe that this will put an end to my troubles, I just have to be patient, and wait." thought Phoenix with a grin.  
  
It was a sunny afternoon, the Ronins, Kaye, Mia, Lightning and White Blaze were all outside enjoying a day of peace and quiet. It has been a few months since their adventure with the dream walker's guild. Everyone decided to finally have some fun in the sun for a change, so they all decided to go to the beach. Mia was laying on a chair working on her tan. Lightning and White Blaze were off somewhere else doing their own thing. The guys were trying to get another person to get a game of volleyball going. Kaye was staring off into the ocean trying to figure out what her latest vision was about.   
  
"What a dream, what is it suppose to mean? Maybe I'm just making too much out of it, maybe I'm not who knows. I wonder if I should tell about my dream to the others. No, I better not yet, I have to see if it comes back again before I tell them. It could be nothing, I mean we are finally going on with our lives, we don't need another adventure like last time. Man, that was the scariest one ever. I never thought that I would almost lose one of them. I have to make sure that it never happens again, yea right that's like saying don't have the sun set in the west. Oh well, I guess that no one can be sure of what the future holds. Man the headaches after these visions lately are getting harder and harder to get rid of." thought Kaye as she rubbed her temples.   
  
Kaye was so deep in thought that she didn't notice that Kento was standing right next to her. "Kaye, hey Kaye, did you hear me?" asked Kento.  
  
"Huh, oh yea Kento I'm sorry, what did you say?" asked Kaye as she turned her attention towards Kento.  
  
"I asked you if you want to play volleyball with us, we need one more person, and Mia said no." replied Kento.  
  
"Yea you bet, I'm always up for a game. Who's on what for teams?" asked Kaye as she was trying to show her enthusiasm.  
  
"Well now that you're playing it's you, me and Cye on one team, and Ryo, Sage and Rowen on the other. So come on already let's get the game started!" said Kento. As Kento and Kaye were approaching the other guys, Kaye had another scene quickly flash in front of her eyes. The flash made Kaye lose her balance and fell to the ground. Kento turned around and saw that Kaye was on the ground trying to get up from her fall.  
  
"Kaye are you alright, what happened?" asked Kento.  
  
"Yea Kento I'm fine, I just tripped over something that's all." replied Kaye with a smile.  
  
"Well be more careful would ya?" asked Kento.  
  
"Ok Kento I promise, now how about that volleyball game." replied Kaye as she took off towards the others. Kento just shook his head and ran to catch up to Kaye.  
  
"Kaye are you ok, we saw what happened?" asked Cye.  
  
"Yea Cye I'm fine, it's like I told Kento I just tripped over something. Now what do you say that we show these guys how to play volleyball." replied Kaye.  
  
"Oh really you three are going to show us how to play? Well guess again Kaye, we are going to be the ones to teach you how to play the game." said Ryo.  
  
"Whatever, Ryo, now let's play some ball already before you talk me to sleep." replied Kaye with a fake yawn.  
  
"Oh now you are going to get it Kaye, you guys lost the flip so we are serving first. So get ready to eat some sand." said Ryo.  
  
"Bring it on Ryo!" challanged Kaye. The game was on its way, Mia knew that this was one game that she wasn't going to miss for anything. She had a hunch that Kaye had a few tricks of her own on the court. The whole game took about an hour and a half. It was coming down to the game point and Kaye was serving.  
  
"Get ready to eat your words Ryo, because here it comes!" said Kaye as she delivered her serve. The ball was coming in hard and deep, Ryo almost missed it, but he did manage to dive and dig for it. Then Sage did the set, and Rowen spiked it over to the other side. Kento saw it and bumped it very high.   
  
"Great job Kento, Cye get ready, Kento just got us enough time to set up our attack. Here it comes, and now Cye hit it!" yelled Kaye. At the same time Kaye and Cye went up into the air and did a double attack to draw off the front line just enough so Cye could tip it over the net for the win. Ryo, Sage and Rowen stood there like fish out of water, not believing that they fell for that. Mia was laughing so hard that she fell out of her chair and was still laughing. Kaye, Cye and Kento were grinning, then they went over to shake their hands to show that there were no hard feelings.  
  
"Hey you guys that was a great game, you nearly had us." said Kaye.  
  
"When did you have any time to pull off a strategy like that? No one asked for time outs during the game." asked Rowen.   
  
"Should we tell them guys, what do you say?" asked Kaye as she looked towards Cye and Kento.   
  
"No way, let them figure it out for themselves, besides I'm hungry." replied Kento with a grin. The others just shook their heads and they all walked to where Mia was waiting for them.  
  
"That was a great game you guys. Kaye that move worked like a charm, I'm just surprised that you didn't pull it off sooner in the match." said Mia.  
  
"Ah Mia, what are you talking about, you knew that they were going to pull that move off?" asked Sage.  
  
"Sure I did, Kaye use to play volleyball with the other college students when she was traveling. Why, didn't she tell you? By the looks on your faces, I would say that she didn't." answered Mia laughing.   
  
"Kaye, you are so going to get it." threatened Rowen.  
  
"Oh come on Rowen, you guys didn't ask if I played volleyball before, so you shouldn't be surprised. Anyway it was a great game, and it was only for fun, besides has anyone seen Lightning or White Blaze? They've been gone for a while now." said Kaye.  
  
"Now that you mentioned it, no I'm sure that they are just fine." replied Sage.  
  
"Yea you're right, but if it's all the same to you I'm going to look for them." said Kaye.  
  
"Wait up Kaye, I'll come with you, I'm starting to wonder where they went to as well." replied Ryo.   
  
"The rest of us will wait here for ya, but hurry up it's almost time to go." said Rowen.  
  
"Sure thing Rowen, we shouldn't be too long." replied Kaye. So Ryo and Kaye took off to look for Lightning and White Blaze.  
  
"Kento how come you didn't go with them, what's up you look like something is on your mind?" asked Cye.  
  
"I'm fine Cye, but I'm worried about Kaye." replied Kento.  
  
"Why is that Kento?" asked Cye.  
  
"Well when I went to get Kaye to play volleyball, I had a little hard of a time to get Kaye to respond to me. It seemed like she was off somewhere else, Kaye was acting like she was having one of those headaches that she's been having lately." answered Kento.  
  
"I'm sure that Kaye is fine Kento, but if it will make you feel better, why don't you ask her what's up, or I could ask for you." said Cye.  
  
"Thanks Cye, but I think that I'll ask her later, hey shouldn't Kaye and Ryo be back by now. It's been a while since they went looking for White Blaze and Lightning." stated Kento.  
  
"No need for that Kento, I see them coming from over there." said Mia as Kaye, Ryo, and the two tigers came from a nearby clearing.  
  
"What took you two so long? I was about to go in after you, until Mia saw you coming?" asked Kento.  
  
"Sorry about that Kento, come on let's go home already." said Kaye.   
  
Phoenix was watching with interest of the event that was taking place. "So Kaye has been having visions again. It doesn't look like Kaye fully understands what they mean. Well maybe I'll pay her a visit tonight, I think that I could shed some light on Kaye's visions for her." mused Phoenix.   
  
'Kaye, are you alright? How long have you been having these headaches?' asked Lightning.  
  
'Yea Lightning I'm fine, and what headaches are you talking about? I haven't had any headaches for a while.' said Kaye.  
  
'Oh come on Kaye, we all know that something is wrong. So spill already would ya.' replied Lightning.  
  
'Where did you and White Blaze run off to today?' asked Kaye.  
  
'Kaye don't change the subject, you've been having visions again haven't you, and I'm betting that is the reason behind your headaches. Am I right?' said Lightning.  
  
'Alright yes I have been having visions again, and yes my headaches are the results of those visions. There are you happy now that you asked?' said Kaye with a little anger.  
  
'Kaye what are your visions about? I know that the others would want to know this as well.' replied Lightning.  
  
'I'm sorry Lightning, I didn't mean to snap at you like that. It's just I'm not exactly sure what these visions that I've been having mean. It's just so frustrating not knowing. I was going to wait to see if they came back again before I told the others about them.' stated Kaye.  
  
'Kaye don't let these visions go too far before you tell the others, ok.' said Lightning. Kaye nodded in response to Lightning's statement, the wind started to pick up just as they were heading towards the mansion.  
  
"Where did that wind come from? It was suppose to be a clear night, I didn't hear anything about a storm coming, it's probably nothing." thought Kaye as she entered the mansion.  
  
"Hey Kaye what were you two doing out there? You both were out there for a while, is everything ok?" asked Sage.  
  
"Yea Sage everything is just fine. It's late, I think that I'm going to go to bed now. So I'll see you guys in the morning. Goodnight everyone." said Kaye as she went on her way upstairs. 


	2. The Ancient Gate ch2

"Where am I, why does this place seem so familiar? I'm in my dream again, this can't be good." thought Kaye. A bright golden light flashed in the distance. Kaye slowly started to walk towards it. Every step that Kaye took, her pace began to quicken until she started to run. As soon as she made it to the source of the light, Kaye stopped in her tracks and the light began to fade.   
  
"You don't really know what that is, do you Kaye?" asked Phoenix.   
  
Kaye quickly turned around to see who was talking to her. "No way it can't be, but it is. Phoenix what are you doing here in my dream?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Come on Kaye, do you think that I would tell you." answered Phoenix.  
  
"Alright then, you don't have to tell me why you're here, but I have a feeling that you know what that is and why I'm having these dreams." stated Kaye.  
  
"Of course I know what it is, and why you're having them. I'm very surprised that you haven't figured it out by now. I guess that you are losing your touch." replied Phoenix.  
  
"Then if you are all knowing, why don't you explain what that is and what's going on?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Sorry I'm not going to make it that easy for you, but I will tell you what that is. That is a special type of gate, it's called the Ancient Gate." answered Phoenix.  
  
"That's it, that's all you're going to give me?" asked Kaye as she was getting angrier.  
  
"Be thankful of what I'm giving you, you're lucky to get any information at all." replied phoenix.  
  
"Alright then, what does the gate do, what is it keeping out or should I ask what is it keeping in?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Were you not listening the first time Kaye, I told you the name of the gate. You have to find out the rest of the information on your own." answered Phoenix.  
  
"Fine, but how am I suppose to find any information on this Ancient Gate. I'm sure that it's not listed anywhere on the web?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Ok I will give you one more piece of information. Your dreams will tell you the answers that you are seeking. Where does the time go, the sun is coming up soon. I believe that it's time for me to go. It was good to see you again, but next time we talk it won't be on friendly terms." answered Phoenix as she disappeared.  
  
"Man I really hate it when she disappears like that. Ok now I know a little more about what my dreams mean. Should I tell the others about this, or should I wait until I have more to go on?" wondered Kaye.   
  
A loud knock on her door woke Kaye up. "Rise and shine Kaye it's time to get up. If you don't get up on the count of three, I'm coming in, one, two." said Kento. Just before Kento could say three, Kaye opened the door and let him in.  
  
"Morning Kento, what time is it?" asked Kaye as she rubbed her temples.   
  
"It's about eight fifteen, are you alright Kaye? You're having one of those headaches again." said Kento.  
  
"I'm fine Kento honest, so anyway, what brings you to my room so early?" asked Kaye as she tried to change the subject.  
  
"You slept throught breakfast and I wanted to check to see if you were ok. I did save you some if you want." replied Kento.  
  
"Thanks Kento I appreciate that, Lightning move will ya, anyway Kento would ya mind taking Lightning downstairs so I can get ready?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Sure no problem, I'll see you downstairs." replied Kento as he shut Kaye's door.  
  
"What is the Ancient Gate? What does it have to do with Phoenix, does it have anything to do with me? What can it do, what is it holding? What did she mean that my dreams will give me my answers? What do these headaches have to do with these visions of mine anyway? Too many questions, not enough answers, aw man there it goes again. I know that the others figure that something is up, since Lightning and Kento both confronted me on them." thought Kaye as she finished getting ready.   
  
Kaye was making her way to the main floor. She wasn't really paying attention to who was in the room. Kaye just walked by and went straight to the kitchen and sat down. "Morning Kaye, how do you feel this morning? Are you ready for some breakfast?" asked Cye.  
  
"Yea sure Cye, I would love some, Kento told me that he actually saved some breakfast for me." replied Kaye with a smile.  
  
"Well Kaye what are you planning to do today?" asked Rowen. Kaye had to think of something fast so that they wouldn't be suspicious of what's going on. Kaye didn't want to tell them until she knew that she had the proof to back it up.  
  
"Actually Rowen I have some research to work on, so I'm going to the university. I should be there for a while today. I suppose that if you guys want to come with you sure are welcome." said Kaye. She knew that the only ones that would actually take her up on the offer were Mia and Rowen. Kaye knew that Mia already had a project that she was working on, and Rowen was into his new book that he got yesterday. The others would rather go and fight the Dynasty.  
  
"Ok then, since I'm the only one that is going, I'll be back later this afternoon. I'll see you guys later, bye." said Kaye as she started out the door.  
  
"Kento, I know that you are concerned about Kaye's welfare, we are too, so why don't you go with her?" asked Mia.  
  
"Aw come on Mia, if she wanted any of us to go with her, she would have asked right. But I'll tell you what I'm going to do. Shortly after she leaves, I'll go into town and watch over her." replied Kento.  
  
"We'll come with ya Kento, let's leave in about an hour, that will give Kaye plenty of time to do her research, and for us to get ready if something is going to happen. Does that sound good to everyone?" asked Ryo. They all agreed and let Kaye have her hour head start before they left.  
  
"Man I can't believe how easy that was, maybe it was too easy. I can't believe that I didn't get an arguement out of anyone. I wouldn't be surprised if they just happened to show up at the university." thought Kaye.   
"Phoenix, your plan to have Kaye find the Ancient Gate is very good, except that it has one flaw to it." said a voice.  
  
"Oh really and what may that be, oh mighty one?" asked Phoenix.  
  
"I need you to find the key to my eternal prison." said the voice.  
  
"Don't worry, soon I'll be at the university before Kaye even gets there. I'll be posing as a professor, she won't even recognize me. Then I'll guide her into the right direction, telling her that what she needs to know." replied Phoenix as she transformed.  
  
"Very impressive Phoenix, don't fail me, I want this to go off without a hitch." said the voice.  
  
"Don't worry about it, nothing will go wrong. I'll just be there long enough to make sure that Kaye is set on the right path. Trust me, everything will go smoothly." replied Phoenix as she left for the university.  
  
"What Phoenix doesn't realize is that she is playing right into my hands. When she finally figures out what my real intentions are, well it'll be too late. What also Phoenix doesn't realize is that she will be delivering the key to my freedom right to me." said the voice.  
  
"Well it looks like Kaye isn't here just yet, good I have just enough time to get into character." thought Phoenix. It didn't take long for Phoenix to get into her role as a professor from the university. Kaye got out of her car and entered the university. "Ok now to see who I can talk to about dreams." Kaye thought to herself. Kaye started to walk down the hallway until she came to the psychology department.   
  
Kaye walked into the lounge to see if any one was around, no one was in the room, so she decided to do some research. She knew the room well enough so that she could easily find whatever she needed. Kaye was slowly backing up to see if the books that she needed were on the top shelf. Just then Kaye bumped into someone. "I'm sorry, I thought that I was the only one here, are you alright?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Yes I'm fine, is there something specific that you are looking for?" asked Phoenix.  
  
"I'm looking for some reference books about dreams and visions. There's a thesis that I'm working on." said Kaye as she hid the main reason why she was looking.  
  
"Actually that sounds like interesting topics for a thesis." replied Phoenix.  
  
"Oh look at the time, I must be going. It was nice meeting you, I hope to see you again someday." replied Phoenix.  
  
"Yea sure, and thanks again." said Kaye as she turned around and saw that Phoenix was gone just as quickly as she appeared.   
  
"Ok now that was a little too weird for me. Oh well I have the books that I was looking for, now it's time for me to get cracking on what the text says, maybe it can help me figure out the true meaning of my dreams." thought Kaye as she sat down and started reading.   
  
About half an hour later, Kaye was getting a little annoyed about her progress. "Man I've looked over and over in these books and I still haven't found anything about the one that I've seen in my dreams." thought Kaye as she began to leave.  
  
"Hey guys, Kaye's coming out, scatter. If she knew that we were tailing her, Kaye would be pretty angry." warned Sage. Everyone scattered into different directions just before Kaye walked out of the university.  
  
"Ok that was weird, was that Rowen? I could have sworn that was him, if he's here, then the others are as well. Why would they scatter like that, unless they would think that I would be mad at them for tailing me. Normally I probably would, but this time I'm glad that they did." thought Kaye.  
  
"Do ya think that she saw us or not?" asked Rowen.  
  
"I'm not sure, but I think that maybe we should still follow Kaye. Something isn't quite right here." replied Ryo. The others agreed and picked up Kaye's trail. It didn't take long for them to catch up to Kaye, she was only a block away from them.  
  
Kaye thought that before she left the university grounds, she wanted them to know that she was aware of their presence, so Kaye suddenly stopped, "Ok you guys." said Kaye as she waited for her friends.  
  
"Kaye how long did you know that we were here?" asked Cye.  
  
"I've known for the last half hour, when I barely spotted Rowen's blue hair." answered Kaye.  
  
"Alright then Kaye, would ya mind telling us what's going on?" asked Mia.  
  
Kaye took a quick look around their surroundings and motioned them to somewhere that was more private. "Fine I suppose that it's time that I told you about what's been going on." replied Kaye.   
  
They all waited patiently for Kaye to tell her story. "It all started shortly after we got back from the dream walker's guild. It was a month since we've been home, everything was nice and quiet for a change. Then I've been having these visions again, and after each vision I've been having these headaches. I can't really explain why they are occuring they just are. I don't know what these visions are suppose to mean, that's why I went to the university today. Here's the really weird part, Phoenix was in my last dream. She wouldn't explain to me why she was there, but she did tell me what the thing was that I was seeing in my dreams. Phoenix told me it's a gateway called the Ancient Gate, and that's it." said Kaye as she brought them up to speed.  
  
"Kaye how come you didn't tell us about this as soon as you started to have these visions?" asked Kento with concern.  
  
"I'm sorry Kento, everyone, but I thougth at first that they were of no concern, but now I'm not so sure." replied Kaye.  
  
"Did you find anything out in the books that you were looking through?" asked Sage.  
  
"No nothing yet." replied Kaye.  
  
The sky began to turn pitch black, lightning went off around them. The wind blew so fierce that the benches were flying towards them. "Watch out, incoming benches!" yelled Ryo. They all jumped out of the way just before the benches crashed where they were all standing. Then the wind suddenly stopped, but the sky was still pitch black.   
  
"Hello again Kaye, it's so good to see you. Are you glad to see me again?" asked Phoenix. 


	3. The Ancient Gate ch3

"If you want it to know so badly, you know where to find me, I'll be waiting." replied Phoenix as she disappeared laughing.  
  
"Man, I don't believe this, I thought since we saved each other's lives during the fight with Kesi that she would be gone. We would be even, why is she playing these mind games on me?" said Kaye angrily.  
  
"Kaye it's alright, everything will work out. We'll get her and we'll also find out what your visions mean, trust me." said Cye.  
  
"Thanks Cye, you're right of course. Well let's get going, we have a long way to go." replied Kaye.  
  
"Kaye, you said we right, we as in all of us?" asked Kento.  
  
"Yea Kento I said we, I have a feeling that this is going to be one heck of a ride. So if we are going to find Phoenix then we better get going." replied Kaye.  
  
"Kaye how are we going to find Phoenix, we can't exactly look her up in the phone book?" asked Kento.  
  
'Lightning, hey Lightning I need your help old friend.' said Kaye. Lightning heard Kaye's call and teleported himself and White Blaze to their location.  
  
'Thanks for coming Lightning, we need to find Phoenix, can you get a trace on her?' asked Kaye. Lightning nodded and began to find Phoenix's energy trail, it didn't take long for him to find it.  
  
'Kaye I have a lock on Phoenix, if we don't go now there may be a chance that I'll lose it.' replied Lightning.  
  
"Ok everyone, Lighting told me that he has a lock on Phoenix's energy trail." said Kaye.  
  
"Well then let's go already." replied Kento. Kaye smiled at Kento and then turned back to Lightning.  
  
'Ok my friend it's your show now.' said Kaye. Lightning once again nodded to show that he understood, Lightning still barely had a fix on Phoenix's energy trail, so then he transported everyone to Phoenix's location.   
  
"I can't let them find us that easily, this looks like a good place to lose them." thought Phoenix. A ball of Phoenix's energy was placed in a nearby location to where she was hovering.   
  
"That should throw them off, that way we'll have enough time to make our next strategy." thought Phoenix.   
  
"Phoenix, what took you so long to get back here? Did you bring the key that could free me from this place?" asked the voice.  
  
"I ran into some intereference while I was there. Your key to your freedom shall be here soon enough." replied Phoenix.  
  
"It looks like that they have made it here with no problems. What do you say that we have some fun with them?" asked the voice.   
  
"That sounds like a good idea, what do you have in mind?" asked Phoenix.  
  
"Just sit back and enjoy the show Phoenix, I'm sure that you'll get great satisfaction from it." replied the voice.  
  
It didn't take long for Lightning to teleport everyone to where Phoenix placed an energy ball. 'Lightning, are you sure that this is where Phoenix's energy trail leads?' asked Kaye.  
  
'I'm positive Kaye, but there is something wrong, I can only sense her energy trail that she left here. I can't pick up her new one, it's like she just up and disappeared.' replied Lightning.  
  
"Kaye what's the deal, can Lightning pick up Phoenix's trail or what?" asked Ryo.  
  
"No he can't, Lightning says that it's like she up and disappeared just like that." answered Kaye.  
  
"Well where do we go from here? We don't know this area at all, Kaye does this place look familiar to you?" asked Sage.  
  
"I'm sorry Sage, but this place doesn't look familiar to me at all. But the really weird thing is that this place feels familiar, maybe it has to do with my dreams somehow." replied Kaye slightly confused.  
  
"Kaye don't worry about it, I'm sure that it'll come to ya. In the meantime, I think that we better figure out where to go from here." said Rowen.  
  
"Well since Lightning is a little weak from the teleporting, I think that we should rest before we go anywhere, then maybe we can figure out where to go and what is our next move." replied Mia.  
  
"Sounds like a good idea Mia, it looks like Lightning..." Kaye started to say.   
  
"Kaye what's wrong, hey Kaye why won't you answer. Guys something's wrong, Kaye isn't responding to me." said Mia. The Ronins ran to where Kaye and Mia were, Kaye was in a type of a trance, she couldn't move even if she wanted to.  
  
"Mia what happened?" asked Ryo.  
  
"I'm not sure Ryo, one minute we were talking, and the next Kaye just froze there." replied Mia.  
  
"Does it strike any of you, that the state Kaye is in right now was the same one when we all were in the dream realm?" wondered Rowen.  
  
"Rowen what the heck are you talking about? Kaye isn't moving at all, and the only thing that you are doing is remembering what happened to her in the dream realm instead of right now!" replied Kento angrily.  
  
"Kento calm down, Rowen is just as concerned as the rest of us." said Sage while holding Kento back.   
  
"It's alright Sage, the main thing to do now is to figure out how to get Kaye back to normal." replied Rowen.  
  
"What's going on, where am I? I can't be dreaming, one moment I was talking with Mia, and the next thing I know I'm here in this strange place with some kind of fog surrounding me. Hey that's the same gateway that I've been seeing in my dreams too." thought Kaye as she looked around.   
  
"Hello Kaye, I'm glad that you have come to pay me a visit. It's been a long time since I've had any visitors." said the voice.  
  
"Who are you, what's going on here, how do you know about me?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Well I guess that introductions are in order. Yes I do know you, and I know about the visions that you've been having. I'm known only as the Gatekeepker, I'm the guardian of the Ancient Gate." explained Gatekeeper.  
  
"That's all well and good, but you still didn't explain what this has to do with me." replied Kaye.  
  
"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you what your role is just yet." said Gatekeeper.  
  
"Then why keep me in suspense? I also have a feeling that you know where Phoenix is, don't you?" reasoned Kaye.  
  
"You are correct, but our time is short, so I will leave you now. But we will meet again, so long for now." said Gatekeeper as he vanished from Kaye's sight.  
  
"Hey come back here you jerk!" Kaye yelled. She began to slowly get her mobility back.   
  
"Guys it's Kaye, she's coming to. Hey there Kaye, you gave us quiet a scare are you alright?" asked Mia.  
  
"I will be just as soon as Kento lets me down. Come on Kento I'm having a little of a hard time breathing right now." answered Kaye.   
  
"Sorry about that Kaye." replied Kento as he put Kaye down.  
  
"Alright Kaye maybe now you can tell us what happened just now." said Cye.  
  
"It was so weird, one minute I was talking with Mia and then the next thing I know I'm surrounded by some kind of fog, as well as the Ancient Gate that I've been seeing in my visions. Then I heard someone talking to me, he knew who I was. He knew why I've been having these visions, he knows about Phoenix." replied Kaye quietly.  
  
"Kaye, did he happen to tell you his name, or why you've been having these visions?" asked Sage.  
  
"He introduced himself as Gatekeeper the guardian of the Ancient Gate. Yes it's the same one that has been occuring in my visions. No, he didn't tell me anything else about my visions or about Phoenix." answered Kaye.  
  
"Kaye I have an idea that might help out with the situation, but you're not going to like it." said Sage.  
  
"What's your idea Sage, wait a minute you're not thinking about dream walking yourself are you?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Yes I am Kaye, it's the only way to figure out what your visions mean. Anyway I'm the best one suited to pull it off, I mean besides you of course." replied Sage.  
  
"Sage that is absolutely the craziest plan that I have ever heard. No way am I going to let you put yourself through that kind of danger." said Kaye with a hint of anger.  
  
"I'm sorry Kaye, but I don't see any other alternative here, unless you or anyone else has a better plan, then I suggest that we go with mine." argued Sage.  
  
"Kaye you know that Sage is right on this. Remember we've all done it, but Sage was the one that has the closest ability to do this out of us here." said Cye.  
  
"Alright, fine then I'll let Sage do it, but only on one condition." stated Kaye.  
  
"What's the condition?" asked Sage.  
  
"That you don't let your guard down for one second. I'm not sure of what would happen to you if you interfere with the dream cycle once it's in play." said Kaye.  
  
"It's a deal Kaye, no matter what happens I'll stay out of it, I promise. I'm ready to begin when you are." replied Sage.  
  
"Fine then, I'm holding you to your promise Sage, now let us begin with the dream walk." said Kaye as she and Sage got ready to enter Kaye's dream realm.   
  
In Kaye's dream, Sage looked around his surroundings. At first he could only see a thick fog, but then a bright golden light got his attention, his eyes finally adjusted to the light that was giving off. He couldn't see Kaye anywhere, so Sage decided to go and search for her. "What the heck was that? Whatever it was, I better hurry up and find Kaye." thought Sage as he ran towards the golden light.   
  
"I can feel the key close by, come to me key to my eternal prison, come to me." taunted a voice. The voice kept on chanting the same statement over and over again. Sage kept on walking towards the voice, but as soon as he thought that he was close to the source it stopped.  
  
"Who are you, what key are you talking about? Answer me!" shouted Sage. The voice started the statement again, but this time it was in a different direction. So Sage started out to the new source, but just as he was walking, a ball of light was coming at him. It was coming in really fast, he just avoided being hit, Sage was about to see where the attack came from until another one was coming at him faster than the first one. Sage did the only thing that was possible, he braced himself for the compact but it never came. Sage found himself out of Kaye's dream and back with his friends. 


	4. The Ancient Gate ch4

"Sage are you alright, what happened when you were in Kaye's dream?" asked Mia.  
  
"Yea I'm fine just a little drained. Kaye I'm sorry I couldn't figure out what your dreams were about. You weren't kidding when you said that they were confusing." said Sage.  
  
"It's alright Sage, you better rest up before we go any further." replied Kaye as she hid her disappointment.   
  
"Well Sage are you going to tell us what you saw in Kaye's dream or what?" asked Ryo. Sage glanced at Kaye, she didn't even flinch at Ryo's question. So Sage decided to tell them what happened in Kaye's dream. When he was finished, everyone was just as confused as Kaye and Sage.  
  
"That is one heck of a dream you've been having Kaye. How come you didn't tell us about it sooner?" asked Cye.   
  
"It didn't seem important enough at the time I guess." replied Kaye quietly.  
  
"Not important enough, come on Kaye get real would ya." said Kento.  
  
"Kento that's enough, we don't need a fight right now. We have to figure out where Phoenix went to, as well as what she has to do with Kaye and her dreams." said Rowen.  
  
"It's ok Rowen, I know that Kento is as worried as the rest of you. So why don't we just get some sleep and then we can figure out what to do in the morning, alright." replied Kaye. So with that said, everyone went to sleep, well almost everyone, Kaye couldn't sleep so she decided to go and get her thoughts together. Kaye didn't have to walk very far to see that she wasn't the only one that couldn't sleep.   
  
"Hey Sage mind if I join you?" asked Kaye as she approached him.   
  
"Kaye, I didn't think that anyone else would be up." replied Sage.  
  
"Did you want to be alone, I can leave if you want." said Kaye.   
  
"No Kaye don't leave, actually I wanted to talk to you anyway." answered Sage as he motioned Kaye to join him.   
  
"Sure Sage, let me guess, It's about my dreams that I've been having lately." stated Kaye.  
  
"Yea it is, for some reason I can't figure out what this voice kept on saying about some type of key, as well as the golden light that I saw." replied Sage.  
  
"Sage, I have to ask you something, if you don't want to answer it's ok. Ever since you took that dream walk in my head, have you been seeing visions since you've been back?" asked Kaye.  
  
He waited a little while before answering Kaye's question. "Yes I've been seeing small flashes of what happened in your dreams. I'm betting that's what happened to you at the beach yesterday when you fell, right." answered Sage. Kaye's silence was her way of confirming Sage's suspicion.  
  
"Hey Sage, I'm sure that we'll figure out what my dreams mean. If they lead to some kind of wacko bent on world domination, then we'll just kick his sorry butt all the way back to where he came from." said Kaye with a mischevious smile.   
  
"Gatekeeper, I can't believe that you allowed Halo to dream walk into Kaye's dreams. What were you thinking?" asked Phoenix.  
  
"I know exactly what I'm doing, it would be wise not to question my methods. Besides, Halo as well as Kaye do not understand that the dreams I've been sending her are exactly what I want them to see." replied Gatekeeper.  
  
"Well Gatekeeper where do we go from here?" asked Phoenix.  
  
"For now Phoenix, I think that you should go and keep an eye on our so called guests, while I get the next phase of the plan into action." replied Gatekeeper.   
  
Phoenix nodded and faded from Gatekeeper's sight, she then reappeared not too far from their "guests" campsite. "I don't like this one bit, Gatekeeper has someting else planned. I can't seem to figure out what just yet, what's this it seems like Kaye and Halo are talking. I can't make my presence known just yet, a distraction is exactly what I need." thought Phoenix as she looked around. She saw the perfect distraction, Phoenix chanted a phrase and lept into the nearest body, and that body was Lightning's.  
  
Lightning's eyes snapped open and glowed bright red. At the same time when Phoenix entered Lightning's body, Kaye grabbed her head and fell to the ground. Sage saw what was happening and was confused on what was going on. "Kaye what's wrong, talk to me. Hey guys get out here I could use some help, there's something wrong with Kaye." yelled Sage.  
  
"Sage what happened?" asked Mia.  
  
"I'm not sure, one moment we were talking and the next thing I know Kaye is falling to the ground and clutching her head." replied Sage.  
  
"Kaye, hey Kaye what's wrong, why won't you answer us?" asked Kento.  
  
Kaye slowly let go of her head and looked around. "Kento, what's going on, why is everyone staring at me?" asked Kaye quietly.  
  
"Actually Kaye, we were hoping that you could tell us what's going on." replied Cye.  
  
"Lightning, where's Lightning?" asked Kaye in alarm.  
  
"Kaye take it easy Lightning is over there, see he's just fine." replied Ryo as he motioned over to where Lightning was standing.  
  
In response to Ryo's motion, Lightning started to walk over to the others, but in mid-travel he pounced right in front of Kaye's path getting ready to strike. "Something isn't right, that's not Lightning." replied Kaye not taking her eyes off of Ligtning's.  
  
"Kaye what are you talking about, of course that's Lightning." said Mia.  
  
"Yes and no on that Mia, you see that's Lightning's body but it's not his mind." replied Kaye.  
  
"Kaye what are you talking about?" asked Rowen.  
  
"I think I know what happened. Someone went into Lightning's head and that somehow made a psychic attack to my mind since the two of us are linked. I know who it is too." replied Kaye.  
  
"Who is it Kaye, who entered into Lightning's head?" asked Sage.  
  
"The only one that has enough power to do so, why don't you come on out Phoenix. Leave Lightning alone and face me, or are you too much of a coward to do so." challanged Kaye.  
  
Lightning stopped in his tracks and with what Kaye said made Phoenix mad enough to leave the tiger's mind and materialize in front of Kaye. Lightning wasn't able to stand any longer, so he fell to the ground unconscious. "Lightning, Phoenix if he's hurt in anyway possible I'll personally make sure that you won't live to see another day, I promise you." threatened Kaye angrily.  
  
"Well, there is no need for threats Kaye, I assure you that your tiger is just fine, he's just a little weak from me being in his mind. I just thought with his mental abilities he would be able to withstand my powers. I guess that your tiger could use some more training time. Well it looks like my presence here is no longer wanted. I better take my leave, but before I do, Kaye just a little reminder you and your friends don't have what it takes to defeat me or the Gatekeeper. Keep that in mind if you and your friends still decide to come after us, bye for now." said Phoenix as she disappeared.  
  
Kaye ran over to where Lightning was laying on the ground. She noticed that he began to move around. 'Lightning, don't move everything is going to be alright.' said Kaye.  
  
'What happened here Kaye, what's going on?' asked Lightning. Kaye explained everything to Lightning from the time that Sage got back from dream walking up to now.   
  
"Let's figure out what we are going to do in the morning. I for one am tired and wouldn't mind getting a decent night's sleep." said Kaye.  
  
It didn't take long for everyone to go back to sleep. The rest of the night was uneventful, or at least that's what everyone thought. "Kento of Hardrock, listen to me you are the only one that can bring back the key." said a voice.  
  
Kento was stirring in his sleep. "Who are you, what do you mean that I'm the only one that can bring back the key? Answer me! Why won't you tell me who you are, Ancient is it you?" yelled Kento.  
  
"Yes Kento of Hardrock it's me, the sun is rising I have to go. Remember what I told you." replied the Ancient as he vanished with the rising sun. Kento quickly shot up from his dream waking Cye.  
  
"Hey Kento are you alright?" asked Cye.  
  
"Yea Cye I'm just fine." replied Kento. In that instant Kento's kanji on his chain glowed silver, while Kaye's kanji on her chain glowed orange.   
  
"Ok now that was wierd, I think that I better talk with Kaye about what just happened." thought Kento.  
  
"Hey earth to Kento, are you ready for breakfast?" asked Cye.  
  
"Huh, ah yea Cye I'm coming just give me a few minutes ok." replied Kento. Cye shrugged his shoulders and left to join the others near the campfire.   
  
"Morning Cye, I'm surprised that Kento didn't come bursting out here when you told him that breakfast was ready." said Ryo.  
  
"Yea so am I Ryo, well speaking of whom, it's about time that you joined us Kento." said Cye.  
  
"Yea, yea, yea hey has anyone seen Kaye I wanted to talk with her about something?" asked Kento.  
  
"Kaye said that she was going to get some water, don't worry though Kento I'm sure that she'll be back soon." replied Mia.  
  
On the way back to camp, Kaye was trying to figure out the conversation between her and Sage had before Phoenix jumped into Lightning's body. "What is this key that the Gatekeeper keeps mentioning? Also I'm positive now that the golden light that Sage saw in my dream was the Ancient Gate. Then if it was, why couldn't he see it clearly? Unless, if the entity that is locked inside didn't want him to see the gate. That seems like the only reasonable answer that makes sense. Oh man, I didn't realize that I've been gone for so long. I better get back or the others, especially Kento will send out a search party." thought Kaye as she approached the campsite.   
  
"Kaye, what took you so long? We were beginning to wonder if you took the scenic route while coming back from the lake." said Rowen.  
  
"Sorry everybody I didn't mean to make you worry, I just lost track of time. Besides, I didn't think that anyone would be up this early anyway." replied Kaye as she approached the others.  
  
"Kaye I have to talk with you about something, alone." whispered Kento.  
  
"Sure thing Kento what's up?" asked Kaye as she and Kento walked from the others.  
  
"What I need to talk with you about might seem kind of well, weird." said Kento.  
  
"What do you mean Kento? Just tell me, in the type of life that we lead, nothing at this point will surprise me any more." encouraged Kaye.  
  
"Alright, last night I had a visit from the Ancient in my dreams. He said that I'm the only one that can bring back the key. I don't even know what key he's talking about. Then he disappeared and my kanji on the chain that you gave me for some reason glowed silver." explained Kento.   
  
There was a short awkward silence between the two warriors, until Kaye decided to break it. "Kento, I'm not sure what to say. You weren't kidding about saying that your dream was weird. But I do trust what you saw in your dreams about the Ancient. He wouldn't just drop in for a social visit, the only way that the Ancient would appear, would be if something major was going on. To let you in on something Kento, your chain wasn't the only one that glowed. My kanji chain that you gave me glowed orange." replied Kaye.  
  
"Ok then what the heck are we suppose to do now?" asked Kento.  
  
"I'm guessing Kento that you didn't tell anyone about what just happened, right." said Kaye. The silence that followed Kaye's statement was all of the confirmation that she needed. Kaye knew that somehow she had to reasure Kento that everything will be alright. So she took Kento's hands into hers and brought them to her heart.   
  
Kento looked into Kaye's eyes and knew that everything would workout. Kaye's and Kento's hands fell apart and they both walked back to where the others were waiting for them. "Hey is everything ok you two?" asked Cye.  
  
Kaye and Kento looked at each other and smiled. "Yea Cye everything is just fine." answered Kaye as she focused her attention to Cye.  
  
"I believe that it's time to bring our guests to me." thought Gatekeeper.   
  
"Hey what's that, whatever it is, it's coming really fast. Everyone take cover!" yelled Ryo.  
  
"Ah Ryo I have news for ya, there is no cover to take." Sage yelled back.  
  
A bright golden light started to speed its way towards the Ronins, Kaye, Mia and the two tigers engulfing them from the place that they stood. When the light faded there was no trace of anyone being there. No footprints, no camping gear nothing. 


	5. The Ancient Gate ch5

"It's almost time for the Ancient Gate to open. The key is even closer now, I can feel it's power. Soon I'll be free and the world will be mine to control." thought the Gatekeeper.  
  
"Well, it looks like Gatekeeper finally made his move. I'm surprised that he didn't pull this stunt of his sooner. Gatekeeper is keeping something from me, I know it." thought Phoenix suspiciously.  
  
"Phoenix, I need you to bring our guests here." said Gatekeeper.  
  
"Of course Gatekeeper, but may I ask why did you bring them here?" asked Phoenix.  
  
"You'll see soon enough Phoenix, now do as I requested and retrieve them." replied Gatekeeper. Phoenix faded from Gatekeeper's sight and reappeared in front of the door that held their guests.  
  
"Hey is everyone alright?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Yea Kaye, it looks like everyone is fine, where the heck are we and what happened?" asked Ryo.  
  
"Good questions Ryo, whatever is going on, I'm sure that we'll find out soon enough." replied Mia.  
  
"Guys, it looks like we have company." said Kaye as she saw the door opening.  
  
"Welcome, I'm glad that all of you could make it." replied Phoenix.   
  
"It didn't look like we had much of a choice of ignoring the invitation." said Rowen.  
  
"Phoenix, where are we and why did the Gatekeeper bring us here?" asked Sage.  
  
"What makes you think that it was Gatekeeper that brought you here, and not me?" replied Phoenix.  
  
"Get real Phoenix, we all know that you have powers, but you're not powerful enough to send that golden light our way." said Kento.  
  
"It doesn't matter who brought you here, Gatekeeper wants to see all of you, so let's get going already." replied Phoenix angrily. So Phoenix lead the reluctant warriors to a large room. When they arrived, no one could believe what they were seeing.   
  
"It can't be, but it is, it's the same gate that's in my dreams. But are we in my dream realm, or are we in a different realm altogether?" asked Kaye quietly.  
  
"Sorry, my dear you are not in how you put it in your dream realm. Where you are is of no concern to you right at the moment." said Gatekeeper.  
  
"Fine then, for the sake of stating the obvious, why are we here?" asked Cye.  
  
"Alright I'll play along, you see I'm the voice that Kaye has been hearing in her dreams. The golden light is the glow from the Ancient Gate that keeps me locked in here." stated Gatekeeper.  
  
"Ok, so now what, how come you were locked up behind the Ancient Gate?" asked Mia.  
  
"The reason why I'm locked away isn't the issue at hand, the real reason is the key, and without realizing it the key is with you." replied Gatekeeper.  
  
"What are you talking about, what key we don't have it so you just better back off." warned Kento.  
  
"You fools, the key isn't an it, the key is a who." said Gatekeeper.  
  
"What do you mean, how can someone be a key, and who is it?" demanded Kaye.  
  
"Now, now my dear I'm surprised that you haven't figured it out yet. Why do you think that you've been having those visions for the last month?" asked Gatekeeper.  
  
"No, it can't be, I'm the key. No, I refuse to believe that! I won't do it, I won't free you from the Ancient Gate. You were imprisoned there for a reason and that's where you'll stay." said Kaye angrily.  
  
"You don't seem to understand young one, you don't have a choice in the matter." said Gatekeeper.  
  
"What do you mean that she doesn't have a choice? There's always a choice." said Cye with a hint of anger.  
  
"That may be true, but in this case she doesn't, and there is nothing that any of you can do about it." replied Gatekeeper.  
  
Everyone got into defensive position so they would be ready for any kind of attack. Meanwhile Phoenix was just standing by watching the events fall into place with amusement, unaware of what Gatekeeper also had in mind for her as well.   
  
A golden beam of light shot out from the gate, it latched onto Kaye. She began to float above her friends. Kento grabbed Kaye's hands and was trying to pull her back to him. "Kaye don't let go, try to hang on." yelled Kento.   
  
"Kento, I'm losing my grip." Kaye yelled back.   
  
"Give me my key!" ordered Gatekeeper.  
  
Another ray of golden light came from the Ancient Gate and hit Kento and Kaye with such force that it separated them. Kaye was pulled back into the Ancient Gate. When Kaye was pulled into the Ancient Gate she disappeared, and Gatekeeper emerged. "Yes I'm finally free, after centuries of being imprisoned I'm free to rule this world!" yelled Gatekeeper.  
  
"Bring Kaye back right now!" yelled an angry Kento.  
  
"Your friend is gone forever, she can never come back so you better get use to it. There's nothing that you Ronins can do about it. Phoenix, come by my side you have served me faithfully, and for that I want to reward you for your services." said Gatekeeper. Phoenix wasn't sure what to make of Gatekeeper's statement, so she catiously walked over to him.   
  
"What is he up to, what's the real reason he hasn't made his move against me yet?" thought Phoenix.   
  
"On second thought Phoenix, you don't deserve the reward. Instead I think that I'll destroy you, goodbye." said Gatekeeper as he launched an attack towards Phoenix. The attack was coming in fast and hard there was no place for her to take cover. So she tried to brace herself for the impact, but for some reason it missed her and she was laying on the ground.   
  
When Phoenix opened up her eyes she couldn't believe who she saw that saved her from Gatekeeper's attack, it was Kento. "Why did you save me from that attack?" asked Phoenix.   
  
"I'm not sure why, I just did, for some reason I believe that you'll help us get Kaye back." replied Kento.  
  
While all of this was going on, Gatekeeper was watching the whole event unfold right before his eyes. "This is an interesting turn of events, I'm very surprised that the Ronins saved Phoenix. It doesn't really matter anyway, the real threat to me is gone, now I believe that it's time to take my leave of this place." thought Gatekeeper as he disappeared from the room.  
  
"Hey, guys where did Gatekeeper go?" asked Mia. They looked around and couldn't see any trace of him anywhere.  
  
"Now isn't the time for talk, we have to get out of here if we have any chance to help Kaye. You know your way around here so lead us out. But if you get any crazy ideas about crossing us, you will be wishing that Gatekeeper would have finished you off." threatened Ryo.  
  
Phoenix nodded her head to show that she agreed to help them, for now. "Kento come on we have to get out of here. If we stay here, we won't be of any help to Kaye." said Cye.  
  
"I can't believe that you would leave Kaye here just like that Cye. If I could have held on to Kaye a little longer." said Kento.  
  
"Kento, you know that I or any of us wouldn't just leave Kaye here, she wouldn't leave any of us either, but we don't have any choice. As soon as we can figure out how to get Kaye back with us, we'll be back trust me Kento." replied Cye.  
  
"Yea Cye, I know that you're right, I'm sorry it's just that." said Kento quietly.  
  
"We know Kento, I'm wondering though why didn't Gatekeeper destroy the Ancient Gate after Kaye was pulled into it?" said Rowen.  
  
"It's because the Ancient Gate is the only thing that is keeping the different dimensions together." replied Phoenix.  
  
"What are you talking about keeping the realms together?" asked Sage.  
  
"The Ancient Gate is a gateway to other realms. If it's destroyed, then every realm that is connected to it will mix into each other and cause a black hole that will suck everything into it." explained Phoenix.  
  
"Then Kaye is alright, where is she exactly?" asked Mia.  
  
"Yes Kaye is fine for now, since she is the key to open the Ancient Gate, she is the only one holding the realms together. You see Gatekeeper had to find someone to switch places with him in order to get his freedom, so he needed a human key." explained Phoenix.  
  
"How did Kaye get to be selected as this so called key anyway, and how do we get her out of there without having the realms becoming a black whole?" asked Ryo.  
  
"The key selection happens every hundred years. Unfortunately, Kaye was the one that the fates have chosen. But to get her out, I'm not sure exactly how to do it. Gatekeeper is coming back, we have to get out of here now." replied Phoenix.  
  
'Lightning, I know that you and the others don't trust me, and I don't blame you, but we need you to transport us out of here before Gatekeeper sees us. Then later after he leaves we can transport back, alright.' said Phoenix. Lightning nodded and trasported all of them out of there and to the library.  
  
"Lightning, what the heck were you thinking transporting us away from there?" yelled Kento.  
  
"Hey Kento don't yell at him, he didn't want to leave either, it was my idea so if you want to blow up at somebody, blow up at me." Phoenix yelled back.  
  
"Ok you two that's enough, if you two can put your differences aside then maybe we can figure out how to get Kaye back, and Gatekeeper back into the Ancient Gate." replied Sage.  
  
"It seems like your friends have left you. I hope that your accomodations suit to your liking, you'll be there for a while." taunted Gatekeeper.  
  
"They didn't leave me, I know that they'll come back. They'll figure a way for me to get out of here and put him back into this gate. I suppose that I better make the best of my time until they figure a way for me to get out of here." thought Kaye as she looked around her surroundings. Kaye decided to pick a direction and head that way. No sooner did she go in that direction that an energy wave came out of nowhere and zapped Kaye.   
  
"Man that really hurt, I guess trying to go anywhere is out of the question, no wonder Gatekeeper was so anxious about getting out of here. I wonder how long he has been locked away. Where are the others, are they alright? Kento where are you, I hope that you're not blaming yourself for what happened. Please Kento be alright." thought Kaye. Without Kaye knowing, her kanji on the chain began to glow orange.   
  
Not too far from the room where the Ancient Gate is, the others were discussing what to do next, while Kento was keeping his distance from his friends and Phoenix. "Kaye I can't help but keep playing the scene in my head. Why couldn't I hang on, I'm suppose to be the strongest of the Ronins. So why couldn't I keep a hold on you?" thought Kento.   
  
"Kento of Hardrock, remember what I have told you." echoed the Ancient's voice.  
  
"Kento, are you alright?" asked Cye as he approached Kento.  
  
"Cye, why did I let go, how could I've let go of Kaye? I could have prevented her from going into that gate, but I didn't." said Kento angrily.  
  
"Kento, I'm sure that you did the best that you could. I know for a fact that Kaye wouldn't want you to blame yourself for what just happened either. Now you are going to snap out of it, and help us figure out how to get Kaye back." stated Cye with determination in his eyes.  
  
"Cye, you remember this morning when you checked in on me?" asked Kento.  
  
"Yea, what about it Kento?" answered Cye.  
  
"Well I didn't have a chance to tell you, but the Ancient payed me a visit last night. He said that I'll find the way to get Kaye back." said Kento quietly.  
  
"What did the Ancient mean by that I wonder." said Cye.  
  
Kento took his chain that he got from Kaye into his hands and looked at it. "Something else happened besides the Ancient's visit. For some reason Cye, my gift from Kaye glowed silver, and I found out that Kaye's glowed orange." said Kento.  
  
"Hey Kento, the two of you have a strong connection to each other. Trust in that connection and I know everything will work out." replied Cye. Kento gave a thankful look towards Cye, he knew that Cye was right.  
  
Phoenix wasn't too far away from where Kento and Cye were talking. She was interested in their conversation, so Phoenix decided to join in. "Very touching conversation boys." said Phoenix as she approached them.  
  
"Who asked for your opinion anyway?" asked Kento angrily.  
  
"Easy there Hardrock, I was just interested in the conversation that the two of you were having, that's all. I do have a question for you though. I would like to know the real reason of why you saved me from Gatekeeper's attack." answered Phoenix.  
  
"I told you once already, it's because I thought that you would help us get Kaye back, that's all." replied Kento angrily.  
  
"If you say so Hardrock, but I think that I'll just let Kaye stay in there and have Gatekeeper rule this world. He's your problem not mine. Besides I don't see any reason why I should help you out anyway." said Phoenix.  
  
That really sent Kento's anger off, he was about to attack Phoenix until she got hit from behind. 


	6. The Ancient Gate ch6

Phoenix was hit so hard that she fell to her knees. "That hurt, who attacked me?" asked Phoenix angrily.  
  
"I did, do you have a problem with that? Kaye is a friend, how dare you think that you can play god with a life. What gives you the right to do that?" replied Mia angrily.   
  
"Mia, I'm surprised that you out of all of them, attacked me." said Phoenix while trying to stand.  
  
"Don't be Phoenix, because if I didn't attack you, then I know for certain that Kento or the other guys would have." replied Mia angrily as she walked away to join the others leaving Phoenix in awe.  
  
Meanwhile inside the Ancient Gate, Kaye went into a type of meditation trance. She was trying to find some way to get in contact with someone that is outside of the gate. "Come on you guys, someone answer me, Kento, Lightning, anybody? What's been going on out there? Why can't I sense anyone from here?" thought Kaye.   
  
A powerful energy was coming in fast towards Kaye. She got into defensive position, ready for the attack that was coming towards her. Then in a split second it disappeared, and in a blink of an eye it struck Kaye in the back making her fall to her knees. "Hey, who did that, what gives you the right to attack me with no reason, answer me?" yelled Kaye.   
  
"I don't need a reason, I just attack for the pure joy of it." replied Gatekeeper.  
  
"How is it possible for you to attack me when I'm in here and you're out there?" asked Kaye.  
  
"That information isn't for you to know. This is going to be fun tormenting you for eternity. I'm surprised that Phoenix would come here willingly, considering her connection to the Ancient Gate." taunted Gatekeeper.  
  
"Whoa, wait a minute back it up, what do you mean Phoenix has a connection to the Ancient Gate?" asked Kaye.  
  
"She didn't tell you, no I suppose not. Well you see Phoenix should be the other half of the key to the gate." replied Gatekeeper.  
  
"Other half of the key, are you saying that Phoenix and I are connected?" asked Kaye.  
  
"No, the two of you are not connected in any sense, but she is the one that can get you out and lock me back in there." replied Gatekeeper.  
  
"That is why you turned on her. If Phoenix knew this information, then why did she agree to help you?" asked Kaye.  
  
"The answer is easy to see if you just open your eyes. Think about it, I'm very powerful. If you were promised unlimited power wouldn't you go for it? Are you so sure about passing up such power?" asked Gatekeeper.  
  
"Of course I'm sure, why are you asking me these questions anyway?" asked Kaye angrily.  
  
Another energy wave stronger than the last one was coming straight at Kaye. She knew that there was no way that she could dodge it, so Kaye did the only thing possible, she braced herself for it. The energy wave this time made Kaye fall on her hands and knees. She had a harder time getting up from this last attack. "I can sense a rooted darkness inside of you Kaye. Don't you feel it breaking to the surface and taking over?" taunted Gatekeeper.   
  
"It can't be true, I can't believe what he says, I won't." thought Kaye as she slept into unconsciousness.  
  
"Maybe I went a little too far with that attack, no I don't think so. Now, where to start looking for Phoenix, and Kaye's friends." said Gatekeeper as he disappeared.  
  
"Mia, I can't believe that you attacked Phoenix like that." said Ryo.  
  
"She had it coming, like I said before if I didn't attack her, I know that one of you guys would." replied Mia.  
  
"Kaye! Guys something happened to Kaye, I can't sense her any more. Alright Phoenix, that's it you are going to tell us how to get Kaye out of that gate, and you're going to tell us what you know right now." threatened Kento.  
  
"Yes Phoenix do tell them what you know about your connection with the gate." said Gatekeeper as he appeared before them.  
  
"How did you find us, and what did you do to Kaye?" demanded Cye.  
  
"How I found you is of no concern, and your friend is so much fun to do target practice on. It's too bad that she only lasted about three rounds. Don't worry, she is still alive, for now." taunted Gatekeeper.  
  
"We are going to figure out how to get Kaye out of there and you back in, no matter what." said Rowen.  
  
"You are more than welcome to try, but I don't think that you'll get much information out of Phoenix, so I'll tell you, but first to put you at ease about Kaye's condition, I'll show you." replied Gatekeeper as he produced an image of Kaye in her subarmor with some visible cuts and bruises. Kaye's eyes showed a mix of anger and concern, while her breathing was slow and shallow. There was a small orange glow coming from Kaye's chain that no one but Kento noticed, before the image of Kaye disappeared.  
  
"If you even try to overpower me, I'll make sure that Kaye won't survive the next attack. Since I've already explained Phoenix's role with the Ancient Gate to Kaye, now I'm going to tell you. Phoenix and Kaye are both keys to the gate. Kaye is the key to my freedom, and Phoenix is the key to my imprisionment. But that's all I'm going to tell you, you have to figure out the rest of it on your own. I'll be waiting for you, don't keep me waiting." said Gatekeeper as he disappeared.  
  
"Alright Phoenix you are going to tell us exactly what Gatekeeper meant about you being the key to his imprisonment." threatened Sage.  
  
"Why should I tell you anything, if I don't tell you there's no way that you can hurt me, especially if you want your friend out of that gate." said Phoenix.  
  
"Then we'll just find another way to get Kaye out of there and Gatekeeper back in, maybe we can even find a way to imprision you with him. You know that we'll find a way to do it, so you better work with us, now spill." said Rowen.  
  
This made Phoenix more than a little nervous, so she decided to work with them, for now. "Alright, you win I'll talk. Yes, it's true Kaye is the key to his freedom and I'm the key to his imprisionment. ever since the Ancient Gate was built there has been two keys. Unfortunately, the keys have to take the form of a living entity. The keys are chosen by the fates, the carrier won't know that they are the keys until the carriers have the same type of visions that Kaye had. No one knows who or when the Ancient Gate was built, or even for what reason until now. It was an old myth that has been lost well over time. There are no records of it even existing, because if there were, each of the different realms would bleed into each other. That would cause some type of black hole and our realm would be destroyed." explained Phoenix.  
  
"Ok, I have a question, what type of key was Gatekeeper, and how long was he imprisioned in the Ancient Gate?" asked Mia.  
  
"To how long Gatekeeper was imprisioned, I'm not sure. The type of key Gatekeeper was, well he wasn't a key to start off with. Gatekeeper is an entity that is made up of many different types of dark and a very few light powers. He is basically someone that is made of pure magic that somehow came to life while he's been inside the Ancient Gate." replied Phoenix.  
  
"Alright then Phoenix, when Gatekeeper found us, why didn't he try and destroy you when he had the chance? Especially since he knows that you are a threat to his freedom?" asked Sage.  
  
"I believe that he isn't at his full power yet. There is something else that you have to know before you decided to charge in there and take Gatekeeper on." said Phoenix.  
  
"Well what is it Phoenix?" asked Kento.  
  
"You see time flows differently in the gate as it does outside of it. Time inside of the gate flows faster than it does out here. If you don't hurry, there will be a chance that Kaye's dark side will overpower her and she will lose herself completely." said Phoenix.  
  
"What, are you kidding, Kaye doen't have a dark side. She is one of the strongest people I know." said Mia angrily.  
  
"Not true, everyone has a dark and light side to their humanity. It keeps everything in balance." replied Phoenix.  
  
"Hey can we just save the philosphy debate for another time? Kaye needs us and we are short on time, so let's get going already. Lightning, I don't know if you can understand me, but it's very important that you do. We need you to transport us back to where the Ancient Gate is. It's the only way that we can have a chance to get Kaye back." said Rowen.  
  
The tiger looked straight into Rowen's eyes to show that he somehow understood what he said. So Lightning teleported them to where the Ancient Gate stood. "Welcome, I was wondering what was taking you so long." said Gatekeeper.  
  
"Stow it hocus pocus, we are here to get Kaye out of that gate and you back into it. So get ready, because we are not leaving without her." threatened Kento.  
  
"Before we start our fun, why don't we let Kaye watch from where she's at, I'm sure that Kaye would want to have a front row seat for the main attraction." said Gatekeeper as he opened up a window in the gate. Kaye looked out of the window and saw that the Ronins, Mia, Lightning and White Blaze were all there getting ready to fight Gatekeeper. What really took Kaye by surprise was seeing Phoenix standing with them against the same enemy.   
  
"Hang on Kaye, we'll get you out of there." swore Kento as his kanji on the chain glowed silver.   
  
Kaye grabbed her kanji, it glowed orange to show that in someway of a response to Kento's words.  
  
"Well, enough of the melodrama, let the games begin shall we." said Gatekeeper as he started off the battle.  
  
"Ok guys watch yourselves, we don't know exactly what type of powers this guy has, so be on your guard." said Ryo.  
  
The attack that Gatekeeper launched made them separate into different areas of the room. Kento and Cye jumped to the east corner. Ryo and Mia landed in the west corner. Rowen and Sage ended up in the north corner. While Lightning and White Blaze were at the south corner. Phoenix was airborn and so was Gatekeeper, but he stayed nearby the gate and used it as an insurance policy so that they wouldn't attack him right away. "Ryo, we can't get at Gatekeeper while he's in front of the Ancient Gate, there's a chance that we might hurt Kaye." said Mia.  
  
"I know Mia, I don't like this either, but somehow we have to draw Gatekeeper away from the gate." answered Ryo.  
  
Inside of the Ancient Gate, Kaye was watching helplessly as her friends were fighting Gatekeeper. "Man this bites, how can I possibly help them if I'm stuck in here?" thought Kaye angrily.   
  
Then Kaye noticed that her kanji on the chain began to glow orange again. "Hey, what's with this kanji? Why is it glowing like that, unless, yea that has to be it. Maybe this means that I can help them after all. Man, I hope that this works, Kento hey Kento can you hear me? If you can give me some kind of sign." thought Kaye.  
  
"Kaye, yea I can hear you, are you alright?" thought Kento.  
  
"Well to be truthful I've been better. How in the world did you guys get Phoenix to fight on our side?" asked Kaye.  
  
"It didn't take much, but Kaye listen we don't have much time, how badly injured are you? Can you somehow talk with Lightning and get him to teleport you out of there?" asked Kento.  
  
"Kento, are you crazy, if I could even get Lightning to do that you know what would happen." said Kaye.  
  
"Yea I know, hang on Kaye we'll get you out of there, I promise, hey uh Kaye, I'm sorry that I couldn't hang onto you." said Kento.  
  
"I know that you tried your best to hang on Kento, I don't blame you so you shouldn't blame yourself either. Kento, I want you to promise something, I want you to promise that no matter what, you'll always remember what we have." said Kaye.  
  
"Kaye what are you talking about, you're going to be out of there in no time. So don't you dare talk like that." said Kento.  
  
Gatekeeper noticed the conversation that Kaye and Kento were having and sent an energy wave through the gate making Kaye scream out in extreme pain. Her scream was so loud that everyone in the room could hear it. "You monster, how dare you, you'll pay for that." threatened Mia.  
  
"As long as she is in there and we're out here there is nothing that anyone of you can do about it. So threaten me as much as you want." said Gatekeeper.  
  
Phoenix was still in the air watching the whole event take place. She remembers seeing this type of loyalty when they were all at the dream walker's guild. Phoenix knew that none of them would leave until they all were back together safe and sound. At that moment Phoenix saw that Kento was staring up at her, waiting for her to make some kind of move. The next thing Phoenix knew was that she decided to do an air attack towards Gatekeeper to draw him away from the gate. To everyone's surprise it actually worked, Phoenix and Gatekeeper were fighting each other in the air. This was the moment that they were waiting for. Kento closed his eyes and tried to get Kaye to respond. "Kaye, hey Kaye talk to me." said Kento.  
  
"Kento, I can barely hear you, what's going on out there?" asked Kaye weakly.  
  
"Phoenix and Gatekeeper are having a battle in the air, so this is our opportunity to get you out of there. Do you have enough strength to pull it off?" asked Kento.  
  
"I'm not sure, but I'm more than willing to try." replied Kaye. Both Kaye and Kento concentrated really hard on each other's kanji symbols. They started to glow brighter and brighter, it seemed like it was working, until Kaye's kanji started to fade.  
  
"No Kaye come on, you have to try harder, please Kaye." pleaded Kento.  
  
"I'm sorry Kento I don't have the strength to pull it off. Go get out of here, all of you. You need to escape now so you can come back for me later. I'll keep holding onto the faith that you'll come back for me. Hurry now Kento or you and the others won't get another chance to get out." Kaye pleaded back.  
  
'Lightning, please look after Kento and the others for me. Make sure that they are safe no matter what. I'll be just fine trust me, now go.' said Kaye telepathically. Lightning didn't like what Kaye was implying, but he knew that she was right. So he did what she asked and transported the Ronins, Mia, Phoenix, White Blaze and himself away from the Ancient Gate and to the safety of the woods.  
  
"Lightning how could you take us away from Kaye like that? We could of gotten her out of there." yelled Kento. Lightning looked into Kento's angry eyes for a split second showing that he was just as hurt as Kento was, then he looked away.  
  
"Kento, we'll be back before you know it, and we'll get Kaye out of there I promise." declared Cye.  
  
They all looked back to where they teleported from and hoped that their friend would be able to hang on until they got back. Meanwhile back at the Ancient Gate, Gatekeeper was angry for them getting away but also at the same time intrigued. He knew that they would be back soon enough, all he had to do was wait. 


	7. The Ancient Gate ch7

"It looks like your friends left you behind Kaye. You better get compfortable in their, because it's the last place that you'll ever be." threatened Gatekeeper.   
  
"It's so cold, what's going on, why am I so cold?" asked Kaye.  
  
"That's the darkside of your humanity slowly taking over. You should accept it Kaye, there's no way to win." answered Gatekeeper.  
  
"No I won't accept it, I won't let it take over no matter what you say or do." said Kaye.  
  
"I don't have to do or say anything for your darkside to change you completely. You humans have always had a darkside to your existance. Some people are just not strong enough to supress it. It looks like you don't have the strength to fight against the darkness." replied Gatekeeper.  
  
"NOOO!" yelled Kaye.   
  
"Kento what is it, what's wrong?" asked Cye.  
  
"I thought that I heard Kaye, man Cye I hate this, Kaye is in that gate and we're out here. We should be in there fighting Gatekeeper and getting Kaye out of that thing." said Kento angrily.  
  
"Kento all of understand, we feel the same way, but rushing in without some kind of plan would be foolish right now." replied Sage.  
  
"You humans are very amusing for us to watch." said Phoenix with a smirk.  
  
"You better watch yourself Phoenix." warned Ryo.  
  
"Or what, Wildfire you're going to unleash your sure-kill on me. You know that won't do you any good, and besides the more time that we argue the less time you'll have to rescue your friend." replied Phoenix.  
  
"I hate to admit it, but you know that Phoenix is right Ryo, arguing with her won't help Kaye's situation." said Rowen.  
  
"So then what do you suggest that we do Rowen?" asked Ryo.  
  
"To tell you the truth Ryo, I don't know, I just don't know." answered Rowen as he looked towards the area where they came from.  
  
Meanwhile back in the Ancient Gate, Kaye was trying hard to fight the feelings of not having hope of getting out alive. "I can't let this darkness take over, but it's getting harder and harder to fight. If Gatekeeper got a hold of any of them. No I can't think like that, I have to keep fighting that's the only thing that I can do now. Kento, Lightning where every you and the others are, I hope that you're alright, remember I'll always be with you no matter what." thought Kaye as her kanji around her neck glowed a bright orange.  
  
"Interesting Kaye's determination to try and fight off her darkside is very strong. I sense a strong connection between her the tiger and the others, especially Hardrock. This could possibly work to my favor after all." mused Gatekeeper.  
  
A loud roar filled the already tense air. They looked towards Lightning and knew that he felt as angry as they did towards the situation at hand. Kento was the closest to Lightning than everyone else. Kento placed his hand on Lightning showing the tiger that he felt the same way. But just as Kento did that, somehow a mental connection was made between the two. 'I understand where you're coming from Lighting, I wish that we could do more than just stand around.' thought Kento.   
  
'I agree with you Kento, hey wait a minute we can understand each other. How did that happen, I thought that only Kaye and I could talk with each other this way?' asked Lighting.  
  
"Hey Kento what is it?" asked Cye.  
  
"I'm not sure Cye, but I think that somehow Lightning and I connected with each other." replied Kento slightly confused.  
  
"Kento do you think that you could talk to Lightining again?" asked Mia.  
  
"I think that I could try it again." replied Kento.  
  
'Lightning why are we able to talk to each other like this? Does this mean that something has happened to Kaye?' asked Kento.  
  
'I'm not exactly sure on how this is possible Kento, but I think that it has something to do with your kanji that Kaye gave you and the one that you gave her, and to your other question Kaye is ok for now, but if we don't do something soon I'm not sure how much longer she will be able to hang on much longer.' replied Lightning.  
  
"Well Kento what did Lightning say?" asked Sage.  
  
"He's as confused as we are about how we can talk with each other." answered Kento.  
  
"What else did Lightning say?" asked Cye.  
  
"He said that if we don't do something soon, he's not sure on how much longer Kaye will be able to hold on." replied Kento.  
  
"Well this is an interesting turn of events. The tiger chooses to talk to Hardrock and only him since Kaye isn't here." said Phoenix.  
  
"What is that suppose to mean, we know that Kaye will be back with us soon, no matter what." replied Kento.  
  
"You see anything that has a mystical connection with a living being will have a bond of one type or another. It's not surprising that Kaye and Lightning talk to each other telepathically. The telepathic link is only as strong as the feelings of the living being. In a way the link that Lightning allowed Kento is like the link that you Ronins have with your armors." explained Phoenix.  
  
"You're saying in some way that magic is alive?" asked Mia.  
  
"That is exactly what I'm saying. It chooses who it will be with and how much power that being will be able to control." answered Phoenix.  
  
"I have a long shot theory about the Ancient Gate." mused Rowen.  
  
"Well come on Rowen, don't keep us in suspense tell us your theory." said Sage.  
  
"Remember I said it's a long shot. Here it goes, if what Phoenix says is true about magic being alive, then I think that the gate can choose for itself to free Kaye from inside and get Gatekeeper back inside." explained Rowen.  
  
"Alright then, how are we going to reason with the gate to get Kaye free, as well as to get the Gatekeeper back inside?" asked Cye.  
  
"I think I know of a way to do it, but it's risky." replied Phoenix.  
  
"I don't care what the risks are, we will get Kaye back no matter what." said Kento.  
  
"Alright then here's what is going down." said Phoenix as she began to explain her plan to the others.  
  
Back inside the chaimber Gatekeeper was starting to get a little on edge. "Why haven't they made any type of move to get Kaye out of the Ancient Gate?" thought Gatekeeper as he looked over at the gate.   
  
"Dreams will always be more powerful than waking thoughts, but not stronger than the human spirit or the human heart. Remember those words dreamwalker, always remember never forget, if they are forgotten then everything is lost." said a voice inside of the gate.  
  
"Hey, who said that, please answer me. Whoever you are please help me, show yourself. How do you know that I'm a dreamwalker?" asked Kaye.  
  
"That was easy dreamwalker, all you have to do is look up." said the voice.  
  
Kaye slowly looked up and what she saw took her by complete surprise. The voice that was talking to her was actually an image of herself. "How can this be, you're me?" asked Kaye.  
  
"No dreamwalker, I'm not you I only took this image so I could easily communicate. You see since the you and I are the only things that are keeping the different dimensions sealed. Not knowing when there will be light, fearing that there will always be darkness. Not knowing when the emptiness will strike, does it scare you Kaye that you'll never know what will come?" asked the gate's spirit.  
  
"Yes it does scare me, but I know that no matter what happens I'll always have the knowledge that I'll always have people that care for me, and they know that I'll always care for them no matter what." replied Kaye.  
  
"Those are some pretty strong convictions." said the gate's spirit.  
  
"Yea well, life has taught me a lot. It's just too bad that there isn't a way that you can experience life outside of here. In a way, I feel sorry for you." replied Kaye.  
  
"I don't need your pitty dreamwalker! Anyway, what gives you the right to even try and see what my life is like?" asked the gate's spirit angrily.  
  
"Please, don't take it that way, honest I wasn't trying to pitty you." said Kaye.  
  
"That's enough out of you!" yelled the gate's spirit angrily. The gate's spirit launched an attack towards her. Kaye knew that she couldn't dodge it, so Kaye did the only thing possible, she braced herself for it. The attack made Kaye fall into unconsciousness.   
  
"Maybe I was too hard on her, no what am I thinking, there's no way that I can feel any kind of emotion what so ever. So why now of all times do I feel differently." thought the gate's spirit.  
  
Back with the others, before the assalt on the chaimber that holds the Ancient Gate, everyone was getting ready to do their part of the plan. Phoenix saw that Kento was standing away from the others, for some reason Phoenix decided that she would approach Kento. "Hardrock, what do you see in Kaye that could be so special to risk your life?" asked Phoenix.  
  
"Because I know that Kaye would do the same for me and anyone else here, that's why." replied Kento angrily.  
  
"Hey are you two ready to get going or are you going to argue?" asked Sage.  
  
Kento gave a nod in Sage's direction to show that he was ready. 'Hey Lightning it's time to go back and get Kaye out of that gate. So what do you say?' asked Kento.  
  
Lightning gave a quick look around to see if everyone was in range and then teleported them all back into the chaimber where the Ancient Gate and the Gatekeeper were waiting.  
  
"Greetings everyone, I'm surprised that it took you this long to come back." said Gatekeeper.  
  
"Put a sock in it Gatekeeper, we're here to make sure that things are set right again." replied Rowen.  
  
"You're more than welcome to try. To be honest I don't think that your friend can last that much longer in there. Soon Kaye will not be the same person that you once knew. So come on already, let's get this party started." said Gatekeeper. 


	8. The Ancient Gate ch8

"Kaye I'm surprised to see that your friends have came back. Especially with them knowing how bad the odds are stacked against them, they still come." said the gate's spirit.  
  
"Of course they came, I had no doubt that they would." replied Kaye.  
  
"Well then what do you say that we sit back and watch the events unfold before our eyes." said the gate's spirit.  
  
A window opened up enough to let Kaye see what was going on outside of the Ancient Gate. She could see that her friends were in for one heck of a fight. "Kaye I think that we should put your theory about the human spirit as well as the human heart to the test." said the gate's spirit.  
  
"What are you talking about, putting my theory to the test? Tell me!" said Kaye.  
  
"Let's just say that you'll be out of here sooner than you think." said the gate's spirit. Just after that was said, the gate's spirit began to glow brightly, blinding Kaye for a short time.   
  
The light was so bright that it made everyone turn their attention towards the Ancient Gate. "Kaye, hey Gatekeeper what the heck is going on in there?" asked Kento angrily.  
  
"Kaye is no longer the person you once knew, her darkside has overcome her completely. There is no possible way to get her back now or ever." laughed Gatekeeper.  
  
"No, we won't accept that, guys we have to at least try something." said Mia.  
  
"Strata, check out the gate, it has a small opening in it. Maybe you can shoot for it and it will open wide enough for someone to get in or at least for Kaye to get out on her own." whispered Phoenix.  
  
"What about Gatekeeper, won't he see what's going on?" whispered Rowen.  
  
"Don't worry about Gatekeeper, I'll keep him busy long enough for you to deliver your attack. Now is the only chance that you will have to do it, so do it already." whispered Phoenix.  
  
"Why should I trust you not to cross me?" asked Rowen.  
  
"You don't exactly have a choice in the matter, now do you want you friend back or not." said Phoenix.  
  
Rowen decided not to pursue the arguement any further. He took his stance and got ready to deliver his attack as soon as Phoenix was in place. "Rowen what are you doing? Don't you realize that if you attack the gate Kaye will feel it?" asked Sage when he noticed what he was doing.  
  
"I know that Sage, but Phoenix pointed out that opening over there that the gate has. She is going to keep him busy long enough for me to pull this off." said Rowen.  
  
"Can you trust her Rowen? You know that she'll turn on us the first chance that she'll get." said Sage.  
  
"We don't exactly have a choice here Sage, and yea I know that she can turn on us, but I think that she wants Gatekeeper back in there as much as we do. So are you going to back off and let me do this or what?" asked Rowen.  
  
Sage backed off and slipped back to the others and told them what was going on. "Sage are you serious, Rowen is taking one major risk here." said Ryo.  
  
"Yea I know, but it's the only shot that we have right now, and I'm with Rowen a hundred perecent on this decision. So just make sure that you brace yourselves for whatever happens in a few minutes." said Sage.  
  
"Phoenix you dare to challange me to a battle. You well know that there is no chance that you can win." said Gatekeeper.  
  
"Spare me your words Gatekeeper, you're beginning to bore me." taunted Phoenix.  
  
"You dare to talk to me like that Phoenix. Fine then if you are so quick to accept your defeat then so be it." answered Gatekeeper angrily.  
  
As quickly as the words were spoken, Gatekeeper and Phoenix launched into battle. Rowen knew that this was the only chance that he had, so he took it. His attack hit its mark right on, the opening did get a little wider. "Great shot Rowen, I'm going in to get Kaye out now." said Kento as he started for the opening.  
  
"Kento wait!" yelled Mia.  
  
"There's no time to wait Mia." Kento yelled back as he took off towards the Ancient Gate again. This time Gatekeeper saw what was going on and launched two different attacks at the same time. The first attack was to the Phoenix, she was thrown across the room with that attack. the second one was in the direction that Kento was charging towards. That attack would of hit Kento, but just before it hit a bright light came out of the opening and deflected it from him.  
  
"Who did that?" asked Gatekeeper angrily.  
  
"I did what's it to ya?" Kaye asked back.  
  
"Kaye you're alright, you're back." said Kento.  
  
"Kento wait that's not Kaye." warned Phoenix as she got up from the ground.  
  
"What do you mean that's not Kaye, of course it's her." replied Kento.  
  
"Physically yes it's Kaye, but I sense a darker power coming from her." said Phoenix.  
  
"What are you talking about Phoenix? Are you saying that Kaye's darkside has totally taken over?" asked Cye.  
  
"Yes that's exactly what I'm saying." replied Phoenix.  
  
"Very good Phoenix, I see that your powers are still at their peak. I should thank you Strata for freeing me from the Ancient Gate. Now the realms can flow into each other and this world will perish." said dark Kaye.  
  
"Strata, wait a minute, Kaye wouldn't call us by our armors. So Phoenix is right Kaye's darkside have taken her over. Now what are we to do?" thought Rowen.  
  
"Lightning come back here!" yelled Mia. Lightning ignored Mia's call and headed for Kaye passing Kento nearly nocking him over. When Lightning finally stopped, he looked right into Kaye's eyes and knew what happened.  
  
'Kaye if you are still in there, you have to fight your darkside.' said Lightning.  
  
'I'm sorry Lightning, but I don't think that's possible. For you see Kaye's theory about the human spirit and human heart are to be tested. She thinks that they are stronger than any kind of darkness.' said dark Kaye.   
  
Lightning was looking at Kaye like she has lost her mind. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Forgetting that Kento also now has a mental link with him, Lightning didn't realize that Kento was listening in to the conversation.   
  
Suddenly, there was a small implosion and everything that wasn't nailed down was being pulled into the dark vortex. "Hey what the heck is going on here?" yelled Ryo as he grabbed for the nearest pillar.   
  
"It looks like when the Ancient Gate was opened an implosion took place and started to suck everything into its path." Rowen yelled back.  
  
"Thank you Rowen for that bit of information, now does anyone have any ideas of how to not get sucked into that vortex?" yelled Sage.  
  
"The only way to shut it down is to get Gatekeeper back into the Ancient Gate. But it doesn't look like he wants to go in willingly." yelled Phoenix.  
  
"Well we don't exactly have a choice either in the matter." Mia yelled back.  
  
"What do you propose that we do then, the only ones that seem to not be affected by this vortex are Kaye, Gatekeeper and Phoenix." yelled Cye.  
  
"Cye what are you suggesting here, I hope that you're not saying what I think that you're saying are you?" yelled Kento.  
  
"I'm sorry Kento, but it's the only alternative that we have at the moment." yelled Cye.  
  
'What's going on, why are we not affected by what's going on?' thought Kaye.  
  
'Oh come on Kaye, are you that clueless about what's going on? You want an explanation, alright here it is you are out of the Ancient Gate, I'm your darkside that has taken over your body, and the vortex has finally opened up so everyone that you hold close to your heart will disappear forever.' said Kaye's darkside.  
  
'I can't, no I won't let that happen. No matter what I won't let you do this, I won't let you destroy this world and I won't let you hurt my friends or me anymore.' said Kaye.  
  
'I'm sorry to tell you this Kaye, but you have no choice in the matter, because you have no power of your own to support you anymore. So you just better get use to the idea of me being inside of you for the rest of your life. Accept it or not, it doesn't really matter a whole lot to me. This is who you are, so just kick back and enjoy the ride.' said Kaye's darkside.   
  
"Hey guys check out Kaye, it looks like she's fighting against her darkside, and it looks like she needs some help." yelled Mia.  
  
"In case you've forgotten Mia, we're not exactly in the best postition to help Kaye out right at the moment." yelled Sage.  
  
Phoenix knew that there was no other alternative, she had to go and stop them no matter what the cost. Phoenix was wondering why all of a sudden she was feeling these emotions. She was suppose to be an immortal. Immortals are immuned to emotions of any kind. Phoenix knew what she had to do. Phoenix took one last look back towards the Ronins, Mia and the two tigers. She knew that this would be the absolute last time that she would see any of them ever again. Phoenix slowly stood up from where she was taking shelter. She could feel the powerful force that was pulling her towards the Ancient Gate. She knew that it was her time to fulfill her destiny, she couldn't run anymore.  
  
"Phoenix, what the heck do you think that you are doing?" yelled Kento.  
  
"It's time for me to fulfill my part of this untold legend. Once I have taken Gatekeeper inside of the Ancient Gate with me, this whole mess will be over. I finally realized that I can not run away from my destiny. It will follow me where ever I go no matter what. I have the power to lock Gatekeeper away for eternity and he knows it. Don't try to stop me, I'll end up regretting what might happen if you tried to stop me from doing this." yelled Phoenix.  
  
With that said, Phoenix let go of the pillar and flew right for Gatekeeper. 


	9. The Ancient Gate ch9

Gatekeeper and dark Kaye saw Phoenix coming right for them. Dark Kaye jumped out of the way, it was like she knew exactly what was going to happen. Gatekeeper stood his ground, he wasn't going to be shaken by Phoenix's actions. "Do you really think that you can defeat me here Phoenix?" yelled Gatekeeper.  
  
"I don't have to defeat you, I just have to bring you into the Ancient Gate with me and then this whole mess will be finally over." Phoenix yelled back.  
  
Gatekeeper knew that she was right in what she said, so he tried to get out of her path. He didn't want to be trapped in there ever again, but for some reason he couldn't move. Gatekeeper quickly looked around and saw that dark Kaye was projecting some type of barrier so he wouldn't get away from Phoenix. "Why dark Kaye have you forsaken me like this?" yelled Gatekeeper.  
  
"Because I can, and besides you have no rule over me, you never did and you never will." dark Kaye yelled back.  
  
Gatekeeper looked away from dark Kaye, he knew that she was right, so he did the only thing possible, he braced himself for Phoenix's attack. Phoenix came at Gatekeeper with such a force that even dark Kaye felt the aftershock and fell to the ground. When Phoenix and Gatekeeper were pulled into the vortex, it began to close once again. The wild winds that were once pulling everything in its path, were slowly coming to a stop until there was no wind from the vortex at all. The Ronins, Mia, Lightning, White Blaze and dark Kaye were getting up from the ground. They all looked towards the gate, and they knew that it wasn't completely over just yet.  
  
"It's a shame that Phoenix made such a sacrifice like that. It was such a waste of talent, she would have been a valuable assest to my army." mused dark Kaye.  
  
"Kaye you have to fight this, we want you back, I want you back. Come on Kaye you have to fight." said Kento.  
  
"Why does this vessel concern you so much anyway?" asked dark Kaye.  
  
"Because if you don't leave her this minute, I promise you that you'll never know what hit you." warned Kento.  
  
"I highly doubt that you have it in you to even harm this vessel. You care too much about her to even try. Do you think that you could live with yourself for the rest of your life Hardrock, if you harmed the one that you care for? Shall we find out?" asked Phoenix.   
  
After saying that, dark Kaye launched an attack towards Kento. He was a little surprised by it, but he was still ready for whatever attack came his way. "You actually blocked that I'm impressed Hardrock, but I wonder how long will you be able to keep it up?" asked dark Kaye.  
  
"I'll keep it up as long as I have to." replied Kento with a new kind of determination. The kanji on his chain began to glow a very bright silver, giving him an extra boost of power. This took dark Kaye by surprise, but she quickly regained her composure and decided to try and go for a completely different attack.   
  
'Stop it, I don't want to fight Kento anymore, why do you persist on fighting him, you know that you'll lose.' said Kaye.  
  
'I want to see if he had the heart to destroy the one person that he cares deeply for.' replied dark Kaye.  
  
While they were talking, Kento saw an opportunity to sneak up on dark Kaye and take her out. Kaye noticed what Kento was up to and decided that this had to be the only way to get rid of her darkside. 'What gives you the right to play with people's lives?' asked Kaye.  
  
'No one, I play by my own rules. Come on Kaye, you know that no human is all good, that there is some kind of darkness that is in their so called humanity.' said dark Kaye.  
  
'That maybe true, but no one really knows for sure.' replied Kaye.  
  
'Alright I've had enough, no more stalling Kaye, you are going to destroy your friends and then you and I will finally be fully united. Hey where is Hardrock, where is he?' asked dark Kaye.  
  
"I'm right here dark Kaye, now it's time for you to leave Kaye's body now." threatened Kento as he tightened his grip from behind dark Kaye.  
  
"You have won for now, but I will come back, don't you forget it." dark Kaye threatened back just before she left Kaye's body. Kento let go of Kaye and she fell to the ground unconscious. Then just as Kento was going to pick up Kaye, a black myst evaporated from her and disappeared.   
  
"Kaye, hey Kaye, wake up." said Kento.  
  
"Guys we have to do something or we are going to lose her." said Mia.  
  
"What do you suggest that we do Mia, none of us have an idea of what to do next." replied Sage.  
  
"I know what to do, I finally understand what the Ancient told me about me getting the key back." said Kento queitly.  
  
"Kento what are you talking about?" asked Rowen.  
  
Kento didn't give a response to Rowen, he looked towards Lightning and motioned him to come over.  
  
'Lightning come here would you, I need your help with what I'm about to do.' asked Kento.   
  
'Kento are you sure that you want to do this? I mean it's very dangerous, you're not trained in this.' said Lightning.  
  
'Yea I'm sure, Kaye did the same thing for me once before so I want to return the favor.' replied Kento.  
  
'Alright then, but remember Kento you only have a short amount of time to pull this off, then you have to leave the dream realm.' explained Lightning.  
  
'I know and understand Lightning, now are we going to argue all day while Kaye is getting farther away from us minute by minute, or are we going to do this now?' asked Kento.  
  
Lightning knew the way that Kento was looking at Kaye, he wasn't going to let her go just yet. "Come on Lightning get out of the way, how is Sage suppose to get to them in order to heal her?" asked Ryo.  
  
"Ryo there's no reasoning with him, I think I know what's going on. It's a long shot but I think that it will work." replied Cye.  
  
"Cye what are you talking about? What will work, tell us already." said Ryo.  
  
"Well you see before we found the Ancient Gate, Kento had a visit from the Ancient. The Ancient told Kento that he was the only one that can bring back the key. We were not sure what he meant until just now." replied Cye.  
  
"So then what are you suggesting that we do, just sit here and wait? asked Ryo.  
  
"I'm sorry Ryo, but yes that's all we can do, because it's up to them now." replied Cye as he looked back towards Kaye, Kento and Lightning.  
  
'Where am I, what happened?' asked Kaye.  
  
'Hey Kaye where are you?' yelled Kento.  
  
'I'm over here Kento, oh man it's so good to see you again what happened? I don't really remember much. Will ya please fill me in already?' asked Kaye.  
  
While Kento explained what happened, her memeories began to slowly come back to her. 'Kaye we don't have much time here, we have to get out of the dream realm now.' said Kento.  
  
'You're right Kento, come on let's get out of here and go home.' replied Kaye. Kento and Kaye began to walk towards a bright light. With every step that they took, they began to slowly fade away from the dream realm and back into realality.   
  
"Kento do you know what type of risk you took just now?" asked Rowen.  
  
"Yea Rowen I do, and I'll do it again if I have to. Hey check it out, Kaye is coming around." replied Kento.  
  
The others surrounded Kaye and Kento in a circular formation. Kaye slowly opened up her eyes shielding them from the bright light that was coming in from a crack in the ceiling. "Oh man does my head hurt, did anybody get the numbers off of the truck that hit me?" Kaye asked jokingly.  
  
"Kaye it's good to know that you're back with us again." said Mia.  
  
"It's good to be back Mia, hey how about we get the heck out of here and go home. I just want to forget this nightmare has ever happened ok." replied Kaye. Everyone decided that it was a good idea to leave. So they all took off for home.   
  
A few days later, it seemed like everything was back to normal at the Koji mansion. Well as normal as people with magical armor can get. Kento noticed that Kaye was standing by herself over by the lake. "Kento why don't you just go over there and talk with her?" asked Mia.  
  
"I'm not sure of what to say Mia. What if I say the wrong thing and she won't talk to me?" asked Kento.  
  
"I don't think that you'll say the wrong thing Kento, sometimes all one needs is someone just to be there and say nothing at all. Just be there for her Kento, that's all she needs to know." replied Mia.  
  
"Thanks Mia." said Kento. Mia nodded and ushered him to Kaye's general direction.  
  
Kento was close enough to Kaye that all he had to do was reach out and touch her. He hesitated and started to back away from her. Kento stopped when he heard her voice. "Kento why are you backing away from me, did I do something so horrible that you wouldn't want to stay with me?" asked Kaye.  
  
"No Kaye it isn't you honest, it's me. I'm not sure of what to say right now to make you feel better." said Kento.  
  
"Kento you don't have to say anything, just be here with me is good enough. Kento, I didn't realize that my darkside had so much power. I felt like I was two different people. I'm scared Kento, I'm scared that my darkside will come again, and when it does I don't know if I'll be strong enough to fight it next time." replied Kaye.   
  
"Kaye, that's enough. You are one of the strongest people that I know. You can face anything that has been thrown at you and then some. So I have no doubt that you'll be strong enough to fight. Besides you won't be alone, we'll all be here with you." said Kento.  
  
"Even you Kento, you'll be here too?" asked Kaye.  
  
"Of course I'll be here Kaye, I'll always be here." replied Kento.  
  
Not too far away in the shadows, a dark entity was watching them, "yes Kaye you think that you'll forget the power of your own darkside, but know this you'll never forget what happened here no matter how hard you try. I won't let you, I promise you Kaye, that you haven't seen the last of me. I will be back, you can count on that." said the dark entitiy before disappearing. 


End file.
